Gedeon Richter has acquired the women’s health discovery portfolio of Celmatix, a U.S.-based preclinical-stage biotech, adding three drug programs spanning fertility, endometriosis, and ovarian aging to its pipeline.
The acquired assets include a first-in-class oral follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) receptor agonist that could replace injectable ovarian stimulation protocols with an oral alternative – a potentially significant shift in how fertility treatment is delivered. The portfolio also includes a novel JNK inhibitor representing a non-hormonal immunotherapy approach for endometriosis targeting both pain and inflammation, and early-stage therapeutic antibodies targeting anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) with the potential to control ovarian folliculogenesis.
Under the asset purchase agreement, Celmatix will receive an upfront payment and is eligible for development milestone payments as the programs advance into clinical trials and registration. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Our mission has centered on three core realities of modern women’s health,” said Celmatix founder and CEO Dr. Piraye Yurttas Beim. “Women need all their organs, including their ovaries, to function well throughout their lifespan. Chronic conditions such as endometriosis require disease-modifying, first-line treatments early in life. And as women increasingly seek not just to survive but to thrive into their later years, they deserve access to more advanced fertility care.”
The deal is the latest in a string of women’s health moves by Richter, which recently announced a strategic collaboration with FimmCyte for a non-hormonal endometriosis treatment. Development of the Celmatix programs will be led by Richter’s women’s health R&D hub in Belgium.
“By advancing research in key therapeutic areas of women’s health such as endometriosis, ovarian ageing and infertility, we are strengthening our pipeline and broadening the scope of our scientific platform,” said Dr. Peter Turek, head of Richter’s Women’s Healthcare Business Unit.
Celmatix was founded in 2009 with the conviction that female biology deserves the same scientific rigor applied to every other area of medicine. The company had built its pipeline around ovarian function, endometriosis, and fertility therapeutics – all of which now move to Richter’s infrastructure for clinical development at scale.
